


Brothers Will Be Brothers

by Hamiltalian



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Teenagers, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders & Deceit Sanders Are Siblings, Aromantic, Aromantic Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders, Big Brother Deceit Sanders, Brother Feels, Brotherly Bonding, Brotherly Love, Children, Gen, Hair Dyeing, Human Sides (Sanders Sides), Little Brother Anxiety | Virgil Sanders, Loss of Parent(s), M/M, Older Brother Deceit Sanders, Parent Death, Queerplatonic Deceit Sanders/Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders, Queerplatonic Relationships, Sibling Bonding, Siblings, Sympathetic Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders, Sympathetic Deceit Sanders, Teenagers, Younger Brother Anxiety | Virgil Sanders
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-11
Updated: 2020-01-09
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:07:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21757267
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hamiltalian/pseuds/Hamiltalian
Summary: Virgil needs help dyeing his hair. What better excuse was there to actually spend time with his brother, Dee, for once? It was the perfect chance to talk and catch up and maybe even embarrass each other by bringing up each other's love lives, as brothers do.
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders & Deceit Sanders, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders &; Deceit Sanders, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders
Comments: 9
Kudos: 237





	1. Chapter 1

Dee smiled as he watched Virgil from past the bathroom door. His younger brother was in the middle of his emo phase and, as such, had decided to dye his hair. Of course, Dee hadn’t even thought about denying him such a simple pleasure. He was doing a little more than making ends meet for the two of them, so it wasn’t like there was a money problem, plus it was nice to see Virgil at home for once. Those days, he practically lived with those new friends that he’d made at school, even if Dee himself had never really met them. In fact, to his knowledge, they’d only ever been over once, to find Virgil after he’d suddenly taken a few mental health days. Even then, Dee was at work, at the law firm where he’d managed to snag a receptionist job. 

Dee sighed and walked away, getting back to what he’d been doing. He missed spending time with his brother, but ever since their parents passed, it was tough. Money may not have been an issue, but only because Dee was pretty much forced into working overtime most weeks. He hardly had the time to spare for his brother, outside of the promised homework help and the occasional movie night. Honestly, Dee couldn’t blame Virgil for being gone so often, but that didn’t mean he didn’t miss him. 

Back in the bathroom, Virgil was about to start applying the hair dye, but something was just holding him back. What if he missed a spot? He was supposed to be the tough one, what kind of tough kid had poorly dyed hair? And what if he started and noticed missed spots near the end? He didn’t want to leave the dye in too long in a desperate attempt to fix it and accidentally kill his hair altogether. He groaned and took off the plastic gloves then grabbed his phone, stopping himself before he could text anyone. Who could he message? 

Logan? No, he would probably end up listing all of the ways it was bad for Virgil’s hair to fill in the inevitable silence between them, as if he hadn’t been thinking about it since he made the decision. 

Roman? No. If there was anyone he didn’t trust to not prank him with a bad dye job, it was Roman. Was it unfair? Yeah, but anxiety was funny like that. 

And then there was Patton. Virgil loved him, the two really were best friends, but Virgil was tired of being seen as the baby of the group and having Patton help him with something like that surely wouldn’t help. 

So that only left Dee. 

Virgil would be lying if he said his heart didn’t warm up at least a bit at the idea. It had been a long time since he really spent any quality time with his brother. Virgil didn’t mean for the two of them to grow apart during these past few years, but it was so hard for him to stay at home alone while Dee worked and not think about what would happen to him if Dee were to get hurt or how much more time Dee could be at home if Virgil could get a job himself, even if he didn’t have much free time after homework himself. It was easier to just hang out with his friends and try to forget about them. 

But he could never forget his brother. Virgil sighed and just hoped that Dee didn’t hate him for it. He grabbed the bowl of dye and the gloves and went out in to the living room, pausing as he saw his older brother reading on the couch. Of course he’d just be reading, this was one of the few hours he actually got to himself. No homework, no job, just Dee. Virgil shouldn’t intrude on that. 

He began to leave, stopping as he heard his voice from behind him. 

“Virgil? What are you doing out here, I thought you were dyeing your hair.” 

Virgil let out a breath that he’d trapped in his throat and turned back around. There was no reason to be afraid, this was just his brother. “Nothing, it’s stupid. I just didn’t want to mess up my hair, so I was going to ask you, but you’re busy, just forget about-”

“I’m never too busy for my brother.” Dee smiled and put his book down. “Come on, Virgil, you may be all grown up, but you’re still my little brother. You can ask for help.”

Virgil rolled his eyes and went over, putting the dye and the gloves on the table. “Whatever, just don’t blackmail me or whatever when you want something done. Don’t forget that you’re the one who asked. I’m getting the box for the instructions.” 

“Of course,” Dee hummed, smiling as he watched his brother leave. Virgil really was growing up, but Dee still found his childish mannerisms almost adorable. It’s like he said, Virgil would always be his little brother. 

Said brother came back and chucked the box in Dee’s direction before sitting on the floor between his legs, his own legs stretched out in front of him. “Just don’t mess it up..”

“I wouldn’t dream of it.” He put on the plastic gloves and began brushing the dye into his hair. “So, how are those friends of yours? You haven’t talked to them in a while.” 

Which was another reason that Virgil didn’t want them to help. “They haven’t seen my hair since I bleached it.. I already barely get away with wearing my hood up in school, I don’t want them to see how stupid it looks.” He still had to resist the urge to brush that blond hair into his face. 

Dee smiled a bit. “You think so? I think it looks good on us both.” Of course, Virgil had a lot of anxiety around getting it bleached at all, so Dee volunteered to get it done with him and he was actually enjoying the color. He thought it was fitting on himself and Virgil. 

Virgil shrugged, unconsciously tilting his head as he felt Dee move away from the center of his hair. “Roman said that his brother had bleached his hair before dying it green and that it looked stupid because his eyebrows didn’t match.” 

“Roman?” That name was all too familiar by then. “Have you asked him out yet?”

Virgil would’ve whipped around, had his hair not been in Dee’s hands. “Ask him out?! Are you insane?! I mean, what would even make you think I like him?!” 

Dee bit back a laugh. “Well, you talk about him more than Patton or Logan and here you are, worrying about his opinion.”

Virgil scoffed dramatically. “I’m not worried about what that moron thinks, I just don’t want to look stupid trying to get my hair this color. I only talk about him because of all of the stupid things that he says.” 

“Oh, of course, that makes perfect sense,” Dee hummed, a teasing edge in his voice. 

“Whatever.” Virgil crossed his arms over his chest. “What about that weirdo that you met at the mall? Has he officially asked you out yet?” 

Now, it was Dee’s turn to get flustered, though it showed much more on his face than in the way his hands moved. He’d met Remus when he was browsing the mall’s Hot Topic in search of a birthday gift for Virgil. The dumpster fire of a man approached and immediately started asking about the scar that had covered half his face, which Dee was more than happy to talk about. Better to talk than to receive silent stares, he’d figured. The two became fast friends, but they’d never really get past that, seeing as Remus was aromantic. But Dee wasn’t sure how to explain that without explaining the late nights spent at Remus’s apartment or the way the two would cuddle on the couch when Virgil found them the morning after spending the night with his friends. He was sure there was a way to describe it, but it wasn’t one he knew about. 

“No and I don’t think it’s coming anytime soon,” he said instead, making it clear in his voice that that wasn’t a problem. He didn’t see Remus in a romantic light, either. 

“You guys act more like a couple than Roman and I ever do.” Virgil hesitated before asking his next question. “It’s not one of those ‘you don’t have time for a boyfriend’ things, is it?”

“No, Virgil, no matter how many times you ask, you have drained absolutely no joy from my life,” Dee said, matter-of-factly. To an outsider, it may have sounded like a lie, but only because it was something Dee was repeating for at least the fiftieth time. He knew Virgil’s anxiety mixed poorly with Dee having to skip college and get a job to take care of him, but no matter how many times he’d ask, it was true. Dee was happier than what he assumed Virgil’s anxiety let him believe and he’d gladly choose the same thing a thousand times over, if it meant that his little brother got the closest thing he could to normal teen years. 

“Alright, thanks for the attitude, I just thought I should ask,” Virgil responded, the slightest bit of relief in his voice. 

The two continued their small talk as Dee brushed the dye into his brother’s hair and even once it was in, only stopping when Virgil’s timer went off. 

“I’m going to rinse this out.. Do you want to go hang out later? You can even invite that goblin you call a friend, if you want.” 

“I’d love to, but I don’t need Remus to want to hang out with you.”

Virgil sighed. “Oh my god, I clearly meant that I want to meet him. You spend a lot of time with him, he clearly makes you happy and I want to see why for myself. Plus I might talk him into being your boyfriend.” 

Well... The direct approach was one way for Virgil to find out why they weren’t dating. “Alright, I’ll call him, but only if you invite Roman.”

“What for?!” Virgil groaned. 

Dee shrugged and took off the gloves. “Same reason. If I’m wrong about him liking you, I’ll back off, but a big brother can’t stop being a big brother.” 

Virgil tutted and waved Dee off as he began cleaning up the area. “I’ll get that once I finish rinsing. And, whatever, I’ll invite him. Just don’t be embarrassing.” He quickly walked out of the room and Dee grinned to himself. This was going to be an interesting afternoon. Brothers embarrassing brothers. Just like how it was meant to be. 


	2. Chapter 2

[Virgil: Hey, Roman, u free?]

[Roman: Unfortunately so. Patton and Logan are binge watching Harry Potter again and they kicked me out for criticizing it as much as I did :(]

Virgil chuckled to himself. Roman never did know when to shut up. 

[Virgil: My brother and I are going to hang out at the mall with his bf and I don’t want to just third wheel it, so he’s making me ask you to join.] [Virgil: want to come?]

[Roman: Of course! I finally get to meet this mystery brother of yours]

It wasn’t that Virgil purposefully hid Dee from his friends. It was just easier to distract himself from his worries outside of the house. 

[Virgil: Great, I’ll text you in a bit w the time]

Virgil sighed and put up his phone before heading to the shower to rinse out his hair. He hoped Dee wouldn’t embarrass him to death. 

[D: Hey, Rem, Virgil wants to officially meet you. Meet at the mall in a few hours?] 

[Remus: OF COURSE?!?!?!! IS THAT A QUESTION?!?!?!?!?!]

Dee smiled to himself. 

[D: It might be a bit awkward, he’s convinced that we’re boyfriends.]

[Remus: romance... barf.] [Remus: I’ll just explain when I see him! Easy peezy, lemon squeezy!]

Oh, simple minded Remus. When were things ever that simple? 

An hour plus a hair wash and conditioning later, the two brothers were off to the mall, their respective “dates” on the way to join them. 

“Promise you won’t go full dad-brother and humiliate me?” Virgil asked as he slumped in the front seat. 

“Oh, I promise nothing,” Dee corrected. “If he doesn’t love me at my dad-brother, he doesn’t deserve me at my cool brother.”

Virgil groaned. “Stop trying to meme! You’re, like, 30.” 

“I’m not even 21 yet!”

“Yeah, but mom and dad would’ve been a little over 40 and since you’re taking their roles, it averages out. So, that actually puts you at mid thirties.”

Dee smiled and shook his head. “Faulty math, but okay.” 

Virgil smiled to himself and scrolled through Instagram as Dee drove, feeling relaxed for once. 

When they got there, the two headed into the Barnes and Noble and waited, Virgil taking the liberty to wander through the aisles while Dee sat at the cafe and ordered himself a drink. 

While he waited, he felt two familiar hands on him, one covering his eyes and one on his neck. 

“Guess who? Guess wrong and off comes your head!” 

Dee smiled to himself. “Is it Virgil?” 

“Nope! You know who it is, Dee-Dee!” Remus pulled Dee into a tight hug and kissed his cheek. “Where is that little emo brother of yours?” 

Dee shrugged. “Probably browsing the horror section.” 

“I knew I’d find you in the horror section!” 

Virgil jumped as Roman appeared behind him, putting away the book he’d began thumbing through. “And I’d find you in the kids section if you were here. What else is new?” 

“Uh, I am meeting this brother of yours and, apparently, his boyfriend! That’s new!” 

Virgil couldn’t fight back his smile. Roman was always so excitable, like a child on Christmas Day. “Yeah, whatever. We can all meet outside, unless you wanted something from the cafe?”

Roman shook his head. “Me and caffeine in public? Honey, that is a recipe for disaster.” Instead, he grabbed Virgil by the hoodie sleeve and pulled him out of the store. “What’s with the hood? First, we can’t see your hair at school, now not even at the mall, where nobody knows us?”

“I just did something to it.. No big deal.” He pulled down his hood, revealing his new, purple hair, and felt himself get kicked into freeze mode as Roman let him go. “If it looks stupid, blame Dee. He was being all sentimental and wanted to dye it for me.” 

“No!” Roman exclaimed, a bit too loudly for Virgil’s liking. “I mean.. No, it looks really nice, Virgil. It fits this edgy thing you have going on.” He vaguely waved at him, gesturing mainly at the patched hoodie and combat boots. 

Virgil tutted. “Alright, princey, don’t be weird because I found a look you couldn’t pull off,” he said, a clear joking edge in his voice. 

Roman rolled his eyes and laughed a bit. “Fine. Where is this brother?”

Virgil checked his phone. Dee saw his text, so where was-

“You?!” Roman called out as he turned around, mortified. 

“You!” Remus called back as he came out with Dee, clearly excited. He went over and pulled Roman into a bone-crushing, not-exactly-reciprotated hug. 

“Woah, what’s going on here?” Virgil asked, trying to pry his friend away. 

Remus let go and smiled. “Oh! Sorry, I guess I should introduce myself. The name is Remus Duke, half brother to this little drama queen!” He patted Roman’s head, who didn’t seem to quite hate the affection, but he clearly wasn’t a fan. 

Virgil felt his mental jaw drop. This was the dumpster fire brother that Roman had described on multiple occasions? 

“Oh, you did mention you had a brother, didn’t you?” Dee commented as he joined the three, pulling Remus away from poor Roman. 

“Yep!”

“Half brother,” Roman corrected. “Same birth giver-”

“Different sperm giver,” Remus finished. 

Virgil nodded. “Remus has his mom’s last name, Duke, and Roman has his second mom’s name, Prince.”

“Well, don’t say it like she’s any less my mama,” Roman added. “Mom and his dad broke up and mom found mama and they had me.” 

Dee nodded, trying to keep up. “Well, isn’t this one hell of a coincidence?”

Roman nodded. “Yep.. Remus, I thought you were aro.” 

“Still am! Dee’s my bestie, not my boyfriend, Virgil.” 

Virgil hid an embarrassed blush behind his pale foundation. Okay, that explained that. 

“Queer platonic partner! I finally found a name for what Dee is to me,” Remus hummed as he pulled said partner into a tight hug. 

Roman smiled a bit. He and Remus were so different that they didn’t get along well most of the time, but he was still glad to see him this happy. “Well, why don’t we actually walk and talk instead of crowding the path?” 

Virgil nodded. “Yeah, come on, you two are making a scene.” 

Dee rolled his eyes. “Well, lead the way, then.” 

Roman smiled and grabbed Virgil by his hoodie sleeve. “Hot Topic?”

“Hot Topic.” 

Dee grabbed Remus’s hand and followed the two younger teens through the mall, stopping at Virgil’s favorite store. He preferred to wait outside, but Remus ran right on in to browse. 

“What about that nerd store you like?” Virgil asked as he walked with his friend. 

Roman shrugged. “Eh, I can go there later. You invited me, I figured I should ask you first.”

Virgil nodded and looked through a few t-shirts. “Thanks, Princey..” 

Roman nodded and watched his friend. He wouldn’t say it out loud, but he’d developed a certain fondness for the emo boy. He wasn’t sure if it was a crush, but it definitely wasn’t what he felt for Logan or Patton, not at all. But he wasn’t sure Virgil would appreciate being put on the spot like that, so he didn’t say anything for now. 

“I think I’m going to wait outside. I’m not really interested, but you keep looking,” Roman said after a few minutes, leaving as Virgil gave him a nod. 

Remus saw his brother leave and slid right on in beside Virgil. “Hey there, Virgil. I heard you wanted to give me the boyfriend talk?”

Virgil was still mildly mortified by how wrong he’d been. “I didn’t know you weren’t into him like that, you guys just do a lot of couple stuff. I know when he goes over to your place at night, he makes it totally obvious when he comes home in the morning.” 

Remus shrugged. “What can I say? I know how to work with what I have.” 

Virgil’s nose scrunched up. “That’s so gross.. That is my brother, you know.” 

“I know, but what’s the point in hiding it when you basically know everything?” Remus asked, grabbing the shirt that Virgil had been eyeing. “Nightmare Before Christmas? Seems right up your alley.” 

Virgil rolled his eyes and stared at the ground. “Yeah, whatever, I’m a dark teenager. It’s just technically still a Disney movie and that’s Roman’s thing. It’s not like I want to accidentally match him, that would look stupid.” 

“Aw, I think it’d be cute!” He glanced around a bit before leaning in. “Don’t tell him I told you, but I think he’s got a little crush on you.” 

Virgil felt his face heat up as he snatched the shirt from Remus’s hands. “Whatever, that’s so stupid, you’re probably just picking on me, Dee probably put you up to it, I’m just going to go,” he rushed out before starting to leave, only stopping as Remus grabbed his arm. 

“Wait, I didn't to embarrass you or anything. I may be aromantic, but I can spy a couple of pining teenager when I see them. Roman’s too much of a geek to ask you outright, so do you like him?” 

Virgil hesitated for a second before shrugging. “I mean.. He’s not completely gross or anything. He’s just such a weirdo, I don’t know if I’d ever-”

“So that’s a yes, then?” 

Virgil grumbled and sighed. “Yeah, whatever, fine, but if you’re just picking on me, I’ll kick your ass.” 

Remus bit back a laugh at that. “Sure you will.” 

Outside of the store, Roman nodded at Dee as he sat beside him, only glancing over as the other began speaking. 

“So, you’re no good at hiding your crush on Virgil.” 

Roman scoffed and laughed overdramatically. “Crush on Virgil? Wow, he’s just a friend. As if I really-” 

Dee raised an eyebrow. 

“... Yeah, fine, I like him.. But it’s just a crush, I’m not trying to do anything to hurt him.” 

“You realize that Virgil’s in a fragile place? That if you were to hurt him, I’d legally have to hunt you down?” 

And, honestly, Roman didn’t doubt that he would. “Well... Of course, I’d never even think about hurting him, but Virgil isn’t fragile.. He’s a really tough guy..” And, for the scrawny emo of the group, it was surprisingly true. The two of them bickered like crazy and while Patton always rushed to Virgil’s aid, thinking he’d be unable to handle it since the death of his parents, Roman knew the truth. Sure, maybe some of those comments got annoying, but he could tell that they didn’t hurt him too bad, no doubt due to the fact that he had an older brother. 

Dee nodded. Good answer. So this Roman wasn’t just looking to treat Virgil as a damsel in distress. “But he does do very poor in the spotlight, something I feel is quite different from yourself.” 

Roman let out the tiniest laugh. “Okay, that is true. But it’s not like I’d force him into drama with me or anything. He can do what he wants and I actually enjoy quiet time with him and our friends. Of course, I’d adore the chance to act with him on stage or to tell the whole school how great I think he is, but I’d keep it toned down, if the idea freaked him out too badly.” 

Roman also wasn’t planning on forcing Virgil out of his comfort zone. “One more question: What makes you think I’m going to approve of you as his boyfriend?” 

And that one kind of stumped Roman for a second. After all, he has an older brother of his own, but Remus seemed so much less strict than Dee about his little brother. This wasn’t a question he’d ever really thought of, especially since Virgil had been so adamant about keeping his friends and his home life separate. “I don’t know... Honestly, I don’t expect you to, but that doesn’t make me like him any less. If I have to bend over backwards to get your approval, so be it, but I really like him.. Not only that, Virgil is my best friend, I’d never dream of hurting him.” 

Dee couldn’t help but smile a bit. Roman was still an awkward teenager, but at least his heart was in the right place. “Alright, fine.. You do seem like a good guy, and you are Virgil’s friend. I guess I wouldn’t have to kill you if you asked him out.” 

Roman beamed and let out an awkward laugh. “Thank you.. I promise, I’ll do my best to be a good boyfriend..” 

“With your life on the line, I’d hope so,” Dee shrugged. 

Roman let out another awkward laugh. “Right... I’d expect nothing less than for a big brother to keep making that joke..”

“Who said I was joking?” 

“Dee, are you tormenting my brother? That’s my job,” Remus said as he came out from the store, Virgil trailing behind him. 

“This is why I don’t go anywhere with you, you’re more embarrassing than mom and dad ever were,” Virgil grumbled, pulling his jacket hood down over his face with his free hand, the other preoccupied with his Hot Topic bag. “I only have three friends, could you not drive them away?”

“We were just talking,” Dee replied in a far-too-innocent voice. “If he felt threatened by my words, that’s not completely my fault, is it?” 

“You are the worst..” Virgil stood beside him and sighed, pushing his hood back down. “Are you done embarrassing me or can we move on to another store?”

Roman smiled and stood up. “It’s fine, Virgil. I have Remus, I get it.” 

Virgil nodded. “Right.. Let’s go to that nerd store you like so much.” 

“Yes!” Roman cheered, grabbing Virgil by his sleeve and pulling him through the mall, Remus yanking Dee behind them. 

Despite the chaos that just came with a friend like Roman, Virgil couldn’t help but have the time of his life. He loved Patton and Logan, but it was great to not have them treating him like he needed to be protected and Remus was there to make sure Dee couldn’t do the same, though he couldn’t be blamed, being an older brother. It was nice to be with someone who didn’t let Virgil’s anxiety define him, even if it meant that Virgil occasionally got overwhelmed. It was nice to have Dee there to help when that did happen. It was just... It was a nice day. A great day, even. 

“You’ve been smiling since we got in the car. What happened back there?” Dee asked as the two pulled up at the house. 

Virgil tried to shrug it off, but there was no hiding his tiny grin. “Roman asked me out.. And I said yeah.” 

Naturally, Dee couldn’t stop himself from feeling at least a little bit of anger, but he hid it. That smile on Virgil’s face said it all, he didn’t need a parent right then, he needed his brother. So, Dee pushed back his protective nature. “I knew he liked you. When’s the wedding?” 

Virgil scoffed and pushed him a bit. “You’re such a weirdo. It’s just a date, a first date. We’re talking about it later, though...” 

Dee nodded and let them both inside. “Just let me know when so I can clear my schedule.” 

“I’d rather date Remus than let you chaperone us, I’m too old for that kind of thing,” Virgil grumbled as he walked towards his room. 

Dee chuckled and locked the door behind them, sighing. He didn’t know if it was being a brother or acting as a parent, but either way, Virgil was growing up too fast. And, as much as he hated it, Dee was just going to have to deal with it. 


	3. Chapter 3

"You know what I've realized?" Remus began as he dropped himself on the couch beside his brother. 

"That you don't live here and have better things to do than bother me?" Remus's visits to their moms' house were frequent, but Roman was the only one complaining. 

"I have nothing better to do than to bother my baby brother!" Remus argued, pinching said brother's cheeks. 

Roman swatted his hand away. "What is it, then?" 

"Neither of us have ever been on a date." 

Roman paused and glanced at his brother, wondering if he was serious. 

Remus nodded, assuring his brother that he was. 

Roman sighed and paused his movie before turning to face him. "Remus. You are aromantic. I am a gay theater kid. We aren't exactly big players in the dating scene." 

"Yeah, but you've got Virgil and I've got Dee! Not exactly our boyfriends, but he could be yours and this is about the closest I'd be willing to get. We need to take them on a real date!" 

Roman thought for a second. It wasn't the worst line of logic he'd been presented with. "So, what are you suggesting?" 

Remus grinned and pulled a green necklace out from beneath his collar. "I think its time I take you on your second fake date." 

Roman fought back a dorky smile, failing miserably, and scoffed. "Wow, you.. You think I'd want to do that? I was, like, 9 and scared from coming out, you're such a weirdo." 

Remus raised an eyebrow, not buying Roman's terrible attempts at fooling him. "Oh, really? Then why do you still wear this around?" He reached over and pulled a matching red necklace from beneath Roman's onesie. 

Roman's face quickly matched the metal as he snatched it back. "I just like the color!" 

Remus rolled his eyes. "Right, well, we promised each other that as long as we had these, we'd be there for each other. Are you going to let your teenage pride force you into breaking a promise like that, Prince?" 

Roman bit the inside of his cheek and ran his fingers over the red chain. "You're right... Fine, but don't say I wanted to do this." 

Remus rolled his eyes. "Don't say that you wanted to spend some quality time with your big brother, learning to be a better boyfriend?" 

"And especially never repeat that sentence again." 

Half an hour and an outfit change later, Roman was in his brother's pickup truck, sitting in the driver's seat for once. 

"I mean, I assume you are going to be the one leading your date," Remus explained as he planted his feet on the dashboard. “You have to be ready to drive him without giving him a panic attack.” 

“I’m not that bad at driving!” Roman pulled out of the parking lot and began driving down the street. “Where am I taking you, anyways?”

Remus shrugged. “That’s for you to figure out, isn’t it?”

Roman sighed and just drove where the road took him, trying to figure something out. 

As he did, Remus smiled and watched him, remembering their first fake date, or “bro date” as Roman dubbed it afterwards. 

Poor little Roman had tears in his eyes as he told his family that he liked a boy in his class. He wouldn’t have been as upset as he was, but he’d already heard the stupid “boys shouldn’t date boys” talk from the so-called “cool” guys in his class. His mothers had tried to explain to him that they were wrong and that it was more than okay, but he just wasn’t believing it. Thankfully, big brother Remus was living with them at the time and he was more than glad to help his baby brother feel better, with the condition that their mom would drive him around, of course. Obviously, they had to get Roman to stop crying somehow, so the first place Remus wanted to go was an ice cream shop. Chocolate with gummy bears for himself and strawberry with sprinkles and cookies for Roman. 

“Are you feeling better?” Remus had asked about halfway through. 

Roman was still sniffling a bit, but he still nodded. 

“Good. Next we’re going to the arcade!” 

Remus was snapped out of his memories as Roman parked the truck in front of a skating rink. 

“Obviously, I wouldn’t take Virgil here, but I figured you’d like it.” 

Remus smiled and hopped out of the truck, waiting for Roman to join him before walking in with him. “And you’d be right. Don't worry, I'm paying, since I did drag you out here." 

"Drag sure is a nice way to put it," Roman replied with a joking tone. 

Remus just smiled, letting his brother get away with that one. "So, where are you taking Virgil?"

Roman shrugged a bit. "Uh, I'm not exactly sure yet.. I'm thinking maybe mini golf? I saw this indoor glow in the dark mini golf place." 

"Oh, I know that place! Dee and I go there all the time, it's pretty empty and security is pretty weak, so it's pretty private." 

"That's disgusting! People go there with their families." 

Remus laughed and held open the door for both of them. "I meant it's a nice, quiet date spot. Get your head out of the gutters, Princey." 

"I-" Roman cut himself off with a sigh. There was never any winning with a weirdo like Remus, was there? 

"Any other ideas?" 

"A picnic in the park is always a safe bet. Maybe movies, too." 

Remus nodded and paid for both of them to go inside. "Makes sense. I think he'll appreciate whatever you decide to do, but for now, I'm your date." 

"We agreed that you wouldn't say that." 

Remus shook his head. "You agreed that I wouldn't say that. I agreed to nothing." 

Roman groaned and went with him to get their skates, Remus opting for roller blades while Roman got regular skates. 

"You know, for a picture of grace, you always have been kind of clumsy, haven't you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Roman shot back as he put his skates on. "I am incredibly graceful and I can't believe that you'd imply otherwise." 

Remus rolled his eyes and smiled. Roman may have been princely in every other sense of the word, but he had little to no athletic ability. It made for a pretty unfortunate time whenever they went to the arcade that time... 

"This game is rigged," Roman pouted after his fifth absolute fail at skee ball. 

Remus chuckled and gave it a try himself, easily five times as many points as his little brother. "Maybe this game just isn't for you.." 

And the same went for just about any game that required any skill. Poor Roman would try his best, but still only managed to get a fraction of the tickets that Remus managed to rack up. 

"It's no fair.. It's because you're older.. I thought this was supposed to be fun!" 

"It is! We just need to find a game that suits you." 

Roman pouted and looked around, his attention caught by the flashing lights from the dance game nearby. "Hey, what about that one?" 

"Uh..." Remus was a bit hesitant to put Roman on something so showy, but... "Sure." If anyone wanted to say anything about his clumsy brother, they'd have to go through Remus first. They were out to help cheer Roman up, anyways. 

Roman smiled and ran over to the end of the short line for the game, jumping in place as Remus joined him. "I'm going to beat you at this one, for sure."

"I'm sure you will," Remus hummed, but he was not mentally prepared for the possibility of Roman's prediction coming true. And boy, did Roman deliver. 

"Hah! Perfect score! See? I can beat you at games, too." 

"Uh..." Remus just put his hands on Roman's shoulders and lead him off. "What the fuck?" he whispered to himself. 

"How can you be so good at dance and so bad at something like skating?" Remus asked as he and Roman stood against the guard rails, the latter holding on for dear life. 

"Shut up! Wheels do not belong on feet, I'm entitled to some level of struggle here." 

"We used to go skating all the time and you managed to stay bad at it." Remus chuckled and turned to skate backwards, holding his hands out for Roman's. "Come on, there's a bunch of little kids skating around you, this is embarrassing." 

Roman grumbled, but took his brother's hands. "Fine, only because those kids needs the help more than I do." 

"That's debatable. Come on, you can't be that bad at skating." 

Roman huffed and tried to control the wobbling in his legs as best as he could. "And you shouldn't be able to be this weird, but here we are." 

Remus laughed. "Is that the only insult you have? That I'm weird? Because I know that already." 

"You're immune to all other insults because you're so weird!" Roman shot back, letting go of Remus's hands and immediately falling on his butt. 

Remus chuckled and knelt down. "Older brothers are just more annoying. I've got a few years on you." He held his hands out again and helped Roman up as he took them. "Why don't we call it a day? You can take me to the next part of our not-a-date." 

"It's not a date," Roman grumbled. "But fine." He let Remus pull him out of the rink and to the benches in front of the lockers where their shoes were. He changed out of his skates and waited as Remus turned their skates in, thinking about where they could go next. Preferably somewhere where he wouldn't be on the ground the whole time. 

The two got back into the truck and Roman began driving once again. 

"So, why do you still wear that necklace, if you hate me so much?" Remus asked. 

Roman sighed, an embarrassed blush rising into his cheeks. "If you must know, it's because I... I feel safe wearing it. It's stupid, but you gave it to me for that when I still believed in magic," because now was not the time to admit he did still believe in magic and get made fun of for it, "and I guess part of me still believes in it..." 

Remus smiled and put a hand over his heart, wiping a fake tear from his eye. "Aw, how sweet. Well, it's good to know that you know I'm always here for you." 

"Yeah, whatever," Roman grumbled. 

Contrary to popular belief, Roman's insistence on acting aggressively towards his brother didn't bother the oldest at all. After all, Remus knew that deep down, Roman didn't hate him. The two were just so different, it was nearly impossible for them to not bump heads, though Remus didn't care about their differences so much that he just didn't fight back. What was the point? Everyone was unique, there was no point in arguing back with Roman about it, even if Roman always threw his attitude at him. 

"Alright.. How about we get lunch, then we can head home?" 

Remus shrugged. "Always so eager to leave me, aren't you?" he teased as Roman pulled up at a pizza shop. 

"Maybe I wouldn't be if you weren't-"

"A weirdo?" Remus finished for him, laughing through his words. "You're not very creative when it comes to insults." 

"There's so much weirdness about you that it makes it hard to think of anything that makes sense! I'm usually really good at this, ask literally any of the rest of my friends and they'll tell you." 

"Nah, I'll believe you." Remus hopped out of the truck and walked inside with Roman, both of their stomachs rumbling as they caught the scent of pizza in the air. "Alright, food is on me, go nuts." 

Roman nodded and stepped into the line with his brother, thinking about how their last fake date ended. He was too emotional the rest of the day to remember it as clearly as Remus probably did, but those few moments would probably stick with him for a long time. 

Remus had won quite a few more tickets than Roman, sure, but Roman's pride made him hog most of the game tokens, so Remus couldn't win enough to get them anything truly decent. 

"Sorry about that.." Roman muttered, letting Remus look thought the prizes first, despite how much he'd protested against it. 

"It's fine, we can just load up on candy, no problem. Why don't you go get our moms, I know what you like." 

Roman nodded and did that, getting them and coming back to find Remus with a small bag full of candy in one hand and the other hand hidden behind his back. 

"Whatcha got there?" Roman asked, trying to move fast enough to look behind him. 

"You have to close your eyes first." 

"Don't be such a dork!" Roman whined. "I'm ten years old, I'm not a baby or anything." 

"I never said you were, I just said you have to close your eyes before I can show you what I've got." 

Roman groaned dramatically, but closed his eyes, knowing that stubbornness was a trait that they shared. He felt something cold around his neck and opened his eyes when he was told to do so, furrowing his eyebrows. "A plastic necklace?" 

Remus put a hand on his chest and scoffed. "Uh, not just any plastic necklace." He showed him the matching green one that was around his own neck. "We're matching! Now, anytime you think that everyone's going to be mad at you or you're wrong for doing something or being something you want to be, here's a reminder that you're wrong. I'm your big brother. I don't care what people think about me and I sure as he- er, heck, don't care what people think about you." 

Roman smiled and clutched the plastic in his hands. "Thanks, I really love it.. Thank you for being so nice today." 

Remus smiled and nudged him. "Hey, what are brothers for?" 

The two of them were so close when they were younger. It was when Remus moved out that they grew apart and only because it happened to coincide with Roman transitioning from an dramatic kid into a moody, over dramatic teenager. He claimed that he grew a sense of class and realized just how disturbing his brother's constant stream of weirdness could be, but really, he didn't hate him at all. He was just a little upset that he wasn't around as often. He knew better than to blame Remus or be mad at him for having his own life, but... He did miss him pretty badly. No matter how annoying he could be at times. 

"We should do this more often. I don't know about you, but I've had a pretty fun day," Remus hummed as they sat and waited for their food. 

"Actually..." Roman paused for a few seconds before nodding. "I did have a good day. I enjoyed spending time with you, believe it or not." 

Remus snorted a bit. "Oh, I'm great company. I completely believe it." 

Roman chuckled. "I'll let you believe that." 

Remus smiled and enjoyed a quiet lunch with his brother. Quiet usually wasn't his thing, but if it gave him the chance to be a good brother without Roman complaining about his presence every two seconds, he'd take it. Sure, the complaining didn't particularly bother him, Roman was just a teenager being a teenager, but sometimes, it was nice to just be brothers. Or, rather, friends. Obviously, they'd be brothers forever, but for them to actually get along and not just begin arguing on sight? To actually be brothers and friends? That relationship was worth everything. 


End file.
